Connacht Tribune
All 196 consultants at UHG condemn “unsafe” hospital
Every single one of the 196 consultants working at University Hospital Galway has come out and slammed the facility as “unsafe” and “unfit for purpose”.
In a damning letter to the Minister for Health, all 196 hospital consultants warn UHG was inadequate in terms of its capacity and structure.
They caution that the planned new Emergency Department that has got the go-ahead in principal will not solve the capacity deficits or infrastructural ills of the city hospital.
And the doctors urge Minister Simon Harris to press ahead with planning for a new hospital at a greenfield site.
“Galway, and Saolta University Healthcare Group, urgently need a new acute hospital to safely manage the healthcare needs of the region,” the consultants’ letter to the Minister says.
The letter carries the weight of senior hospital management, as it was written and signed by Dr Pat Nash, chief clinical director of the Saolta University Healthcare Group.
It has also lent considerable support to the ongoing campaign of Fine Gael TD Hildegarde Naughton, who has been leading calls for a new hospital at Merlin Park.
The letter is extremely critical of the existing facilities at UHG, warning that they are unsafe, unfit for purpose, and inadequate in terms of capacity and structure.
“We urgently request that you consider our proposal as the current ageing facilities are not fit for purpose either in capacity or structure to meet the current and future care requirements for the population,” the letter states.
It describes existing infrastructure as “neither adequate nor safe” for the delivery of high-quality healthcare, while the “unplanned evolution” of the Saolta group had worsened capacity deficits at UHG.
UHG’s Emergency Department has consistently been ranked among the worst in the country for overcrowding, and patients left on trolleys.
The correspondence also mentions proposals for the construction of a new emergency department at the hospital, claiming that it “will not address the serious infrastructural and capacity deficits across the UHG campus”.
Welcoming the support of the 196 clinicians, Deputy Naughton said that the letter constituted a stark warning about the condition and capacity of the hospital, as well as the pressing need for a new facility in Galway.
“The deficiencies in terms of capacity and infrastructure at UHG are well known and are reflected in the many statistics and stories we hear in relation to issues with access to healthcare,” said the Galway West TD.
“That is not going to improve and cannot be remedied at the hospital’s current site. The UHG campus is at saturation point in terms of development, and its capacity cannot be increased without moving elsewhere.
“The support of every single consultant doctor at GUH is most welcome and extremely important. These are the people who know the system best, and any plans for the future of our regional health service should be clinician-led,” she added.
In a response to the letter, Minister Harris said that he had asked Saolta to develop a new plan for the future of its hospitals and “for necessary future expansion”.
He noted that an options appraisal for the development of hospital facilities in Galway was currently underway, and that he looked forward to receiving this.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
Get the Connacht Tribune Live app
The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
